17-year-old charged with murder; mother claims it was self-defense

NEWARK - Hours after Aaron Cusick's body was found in the street in Reynoldsburg, his stepson was in a Licking County Juvenile Court courtroom charged with his murder.

But the mother of 17-year-old Adrian Kramer said her son was defending himself and her when he shot and killed Cusick.

Kramer has been charged with a delinquency count of murder, an unclassified felony, in Licking County Juvenile Court. Prosecutors have filed a motion to have the case transferred to Common Pleas Court for Kramer to be tried as an adult.

According to court records, Kramer and Cusick, 32, got into a physical altercation inside their home on the 1200 block of Hanson Street in Reynoldsburg Monday evening.

Reynoldsburg Police believe Kramer followed his stepfather outside and shot him multiple times in the upper body around 11 p.m. Monday. Cusick died at the scene from his injuries.

In court Tuesday afternoon, Kramer's mother, Crystal Cusick, said her husband was impaired by something and her son was defending himself against what she believed would be a lethal attack.

"Aaron was trying to kill my son," she said. "He wasn't in his right mind."

Crystal Cusick said her husband had also attempted to attack her and her younger son. She said in court the firearm used in the shooting was one the family had inside their home.

Kramer's attorney, Erin McEnaney, said the case likely is self-defense and referenced Aaron Cusick having a lengthy criminal history. Licking County court records show Cusick was convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence in 2015. He was convicted in Franklin County in 2016 on a charge of assault.

She had asked for Kramer to be released to his mother's custody.

Judge Robert Hoover ordered Kramer to be held in the Multi-County Juvenile Detention Facility in Lancaster pending future hearings.

A probable cause hearing to determine if there is enough evidence for Kramer to be tried as an adult will be held on April 23.